Apple Announces iPhone 5 Event With Sly Invitation

How good is your eyesight? Better be close to 20/20 to catch Apple’s sly iPhone 5 event announcement.

Apple, which sent out invitations Tuesday to its upcoming Sept. 12 event, signaled the topic of discussion. Check out the graphic.

The shadowed number 5 that lies in front of Apple’s Sept. 12 announcement is a big deal. It’s the first time Apple has chosen to disclose the name of a product days before the official release. I guess Apple CEO Tim Cook is not that bad and is indeed acting differently than the secretive Steve Jobs.

The naming of the iPhone 5, for example, could have gone the route of the iPad 3, err, make that the iPad. Apple may have decided to give Wall Street a heads up regarding its plans to unveil and iPhone 5, rather than set the rumor mill flying and cause expectations to soar into the stratosphere – only to see its stock potentially take a bounce if its Sept. 12 announcement didn’t live up to expectations.

The Sept. 12 invitation, however, is still generating rumors: how will it look, how fast will it be, and so on.

One thing is for sure, the name of the next generation iPhone will be iPhone 5. Apple’s CEO will unveil the other details in eight days at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco. If you happen to be near the center when the event kicks off at 10 a.m., you may overhear the details of the most widely expected smartphone of the year – the iPhone 5.

In addition to announcing the iPhone 5, we’re also expecting Apple to officially release iOS 6 and give more details about its features. Although some expected an iPad Mini to be trotted out at this event, I don’t know if Apple will decide whether to announce two important devices at the same event. But as usual, this would not be a surprise if they do…one more thing.